With all of the holidays and family gatherings this month there has been little time to go grocery shopping and meal plan. Friends of ours sent us a free week of Blue Apron so we decided to give it a try. The meals that we chose included Salmon and Lemon Bucatini, Tamarind Glazed Cod, and Mushroom and Swiss Chard Quiches.
All were FANTASTIC. The ingredients arrived cool, labeled and ready to cook! The only ingredients Blue Apron does not provide are olive oil, sea salt and fresh ground pepper. All things I always have in my kitchen!
The recipe cards were easy to follow and had clear pictures of each step in the cooking process, including the prep aka meis en plas. It was so easy, even E could have cooked the meals by himself. And that is saying a lot! Also, each meal plated so nicely. They were all picture perfect!
We have decided that in 2016 we will do Blue Apron once a month, when the meals sound good, just to take some of the meal planning pressure off. It will also save me from a week of grocery shopping! I can’t wait to see what they have in store for next year!
**One thing to note is that Blue Apron truly does include just enough ingredients for each recipe to feed two (2) people. They do not contemplate leftovers. If you are someone who takes leftovers to work for lunch the next day, this is something you should think about ahead of time. We were able to tweak some of the recipes to ensure that we would have leftovers.
Salmon & Lemon Bucatini with Brussels Sprouts & Toasted Breadcrumbs
We added some additional pasta to ensure we had leftovers. E was skeptical that he was going to like this but in the end this was his favorite of the bunch. The salmon was so easy to cook and so juicy. It really paired well with the lemon and brussels sprouts!
Tamarind Glazed Cod with Lime Rice & Cucumber Relish
The cod was DELICIOUS. E and I love indian food and as a result are huge fans of tamarind. We can never get enough. I had never thought to glaze fish with it though! Well this trick is now firmly in my wheelhouse. We also really liked the relish. It included jicama and cucumbers. I was not a huge fan of jicama before this recipe. The lime juice softened it up just right!
Mushroom & Swiss Chard Quiches with Gruyere Cheese & Arugula Salad
Let me preface this by saying that E HATES mushrooms and even he liked this recipe. To be fair, I picked this meal thinking I could make one of the quiches with mushrooms and one without. Unfortunately this was not possible. The quiches were cheesy and earthy. So freakin’ good! I am going to try to make it with broccoli next time!
